Senior leaders of the Gujarat Congress, including state party chief Amit Chavda, were taken into custody by the Ahmedabad city police on Wednesday. The detention occurred as the leaders led a protest march, or 'padyatra', towards the Bharatiya Janata Party's city headquarters in the Khanpur area.
The March and the Detention
The Congress had organized the foot march starting from Nehru Bridge, with the BJP office in Khanpur as its intended destination. The primary aim of the demonstration was to protest against what the party calls the misuse of independent central agencies like the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Income Tax Department, and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to suppress opposition voices.
Amit Chavda, the President of the Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC), stated that the police action began just as the protesters were about to cross the Nehru Bridge. He revealed that approximately 100 party workers and leaders were prevented from proceeding further. Among those detained were prominent figures like Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation's Leader of Opposition, Shahezadkhan Pathan, and Congress leader Shahnawaz Sheikh, along with several corporators.
Extended Detention and Brief Friction
The detained Congress members were subsequently held at the Shahibaug police headquarters for over three hours. According to accounts from the scene, a moment of brief tension arose between the police and the Congress workers. This occurred when the party members were instructed to sit inside police vehicles that had been stationed on the bridge itself.
Chavda explained that the decision to hold the march was made late on Tuesday night, which is why the party had not sought prior permission from the police authorities for the demonstration.
Context: The National Herald Case
The Congress linked its protest to recent developments in the National Herald case. The party asserted that a Delhi court's refusal to take cognizance of the ED's case related to the National Herald newspaper has provided relief to former Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi. Congress leaders cited this as evidence supporting their allegation of agencies being weaponized against political opponents.
The protest and subsequent detentions highlight the ongoing political friction in Gujarat, with the opposition Congress attempting to rally against the ruling BJP at the state and central levels on the issue of investigative agencies' actions.
